Audio Technica ATR 3350 with Focusrite Scarlett 2i2

Swebber

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I have Audio Technica ATR 3350 lavalier mic which works when I plug it into the mic port on my laptop, but I hate the default soundcards. So I got a Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 usb audio interface, but the mic comes through so quiet, I can't hear anything. Even with the gain all the way up, I only get a tiny signal when I tap on the mic.

I tested the battery and it is outputting 1.4 v, so I should be fine there.

Any ideas on what might be the matter? I would really appreciate any help.
 
You have an impedance mis-match, the mic is designed for camera gear. The impedance of 1000ohms is giving you a low signal when connected to an input that is suited for up to 600ohms (your interface). Have a shop around for an impedance changer. Link here to info on mic inpedances.

Cheers
Alan.
 
Sorry to bring up an old topic, but I just tried using this transformer from Radioshack, but it didn't work. It actually feels like I am getting less signal when I used it. I tried it with the input set to "Line" and "Inst", but that didn't make any difference. Does anyone have any suggestions? I would really appreciate it.
 
Errr... sorry for being so nooby, but I don't know how to figure that out. The specs don't list anything with impedance on it. It says "Hi Z Unbalanced" then shows a schematic of the 1/4 in going to a transformer and from the transformer to the XLR out where it says "Lo Z Balanced." Does that mean it is an impedance changer or just a balancing transformer? And if it is the latter, what should I look for to know that it is the right thing?

Would this one from Shure be more likely to do the job?

Thanks for the help!
 
Errr... sorry for being so nooby, but I don't know how to figure that out. The specs don't list anything with impedance on it. It says "Hi Z Unbalanced" then shows a schematic of the 1/4 in going to a transformer and from the transformer to the XLR out where it says "Lo Z Balanced." Does that mean it is an impedance changer or just a balancing transformer? And if it is the latter, what should I look for to know that it is the right thing?

Would this one from Shure be more likely to do the job?

Thanks for the help!

Yes the one you bought already is an impedance changer. I think there is more going on here? The mic has (or had) a mini jack, how do you plug this into the focusrite, did you change the connector to an XLR or use an adaptor?

Cheers
alan.
 
I have the mini jack going to a 1/8 to 1/4 adapter. The 1/4 adapter plugged into the 1/4 to xlr transformer. And the xlr transformer hooked into the focusrite. I can plug the 1/8 jack from the lav directly into my comp and get sound, but I really want to avoid my less-than-good built in audio card. I know that the 1/8 to 1/4 adapter works because I can plug it into a 1/4 out and hear fine through my headphones. I also think the focusrite is working because I that is the 1/4 out I plugged my headphones into.
 
The transformer has a 1/4 F in and a xlr M out. I was able to directly plug the transformer into the focusrite.
 
The transformer has a 1/4 F in and a xlr M out. I was able to directly plug the transformer into the focusrite.

Yes I know, but if you wanted to plug it in without the transformer, like you did before you bought the transformer when you first had a level problem, what did you use?

I am thinking that you may have plugged this into a line input and not an XLR on the focusrite, or whatever you used was wired incorrectly.

Alan.
 
Sorry, I totally misunderstood your question. Before I had the transformer I had the lav 1/8 jack hooked into a 1/8 to 1/4 adapter and that plugged into the xlr/1/4 combo jack on the focusrite. When I as going through the 1/4 part of the jack, I tried flipping the switch to both "Line" and "Inst", but neither got me the levels I needed.
 
There was the problem, I assumed it was impedance miss-match (it is but because of a different cause). The jack part of the xlr/jack combo is only for line or inst level input. You have to use the XLR part to get the correct impedance for the mic. You need a 1/4" jack to xlr adaptor without a transformer in it.

Cheers
Alan
 
...I have the same problem (connecting a cheap £8 mic to the 2i2, works fine with my mac, nothing from the 2i2)
Did the Rode XLR adaptor do the trick for you?
Not sure what adapter you are referring to in this old thread!

I suspect the problem you have is that the microphone is relying on a tiny bit of power supplied by the jack on the Mac, which is not there on the 2i2, assuming you're going in via some kind of adapter, like 1/8" to 1/4", which won't supply any power. (And 48v phantom power, if passed through, might (likely) fry that mic.)

In general, my experience has been that 1/8" electret condensers need their own battery power supply and should be connected via an adapter to the XLR input, but with phantom power off. Anything else is a crapshoot, and usually won't work.

But, just a guess.
 
This whole thread is fucked. The OP had no impedance issue to begin with. It was just a matter of gain, and adding a step-down transformer was the exact opposite of what was required. Honestly, probably could have gotten away with just adding gain in the box, but the interface supposedly has up to 50db gain available. If that's not enough to get a decent signal...

solublepeter - I'd be willing to bet that your (current) issue IS power related. The OP's mic had a battery of its own. Yours expects to get it from the device it's plugged into, like keith said. I am actually looking for a decent solution to this issue myself at the moment. What I've come to is to get an 1/8" TRS > 1/4" TRS headphone extension cable that I will hack in half, connect the actual signal wires back together, and connect the mic side of the other wire to some voltage source. Was actually thinking about using one of those ubiquitous 5V USB phone chargers, maybe with a capacitor across it to smooth ripple and try to remove noise, though I'm also thinking a battery would be less likely to have noise issues to begin with.
 
Interesting, please let me know if that works. By the way, the reason I am trying to pair a dirt cheap microphone with a relatively expensive interface (I’m thinking of upgrading a 2i2 to an 18i20)) is because I want to do a podcast with five people, So I am looking at solutions that involve close miking rather than the Zoom stereo recorder we use at present, (which picks up a lot of room ambiance, even when I damp the room with duvets). Then I’d gate each track.

I assume a bunch of separate USB mics would drift against each other, giving phasing problems, and would be noisy if cheap?
 
Rode VSLR Videomic XLR Adaptor | PMT Online

That ^ might work. It is mechanically what you want. The problem is, the mic is unbalanced and the 2i2 balanced and you really need to work balanced (going to be quite long cable runs?)

This is yet again a problem of a would be 'audioist' not having even basic electrical skill but wanting to step out of the conventional 'off the shelf' techniques.

The solution is a P of P if you have some DIY aptitude. You need a 3.5mm jack, a 1:1 audio transformer (could be 1:3 and very cheap, $10 for speech) an XLR 3p chassis plug and a tin to put it all in. start work at 5pm, bet all done and dusted with time for a pint down the frog.

If all the above is G'gook you are a bit stuffed. I don't know of such a box you can buy.

Dave.
 
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